Simmer!

Tonight I made soup. Warm delicious soup. I was inspired by VeganYumYum’s post today about Minestrone.

Overall the seasoning turned out great. I did add a touch too much salt, but I’m getting better. I’m really happy. I made a White Bean & Vegetable Soup. Of course, again, I couldn’t find a recipe that I could use directly from the book. I didn’t have all the ingredients in stock. (I used all the onions in the house for the tart on Monday, among other missing ingredients.) I took some ideas from this White Bean and Vegetable Soup Recipe and the Tuscan Bean and Farro Soup from Chez Panisse Vegetables.

I rummaged around in the fridge, freezer, and pantry and found what I could. The following is the concoction that I made tonight. This kind of soup is very flexible and you can add any type of bean or vegetable you want. I would have loved to add some celery or leeks, (or onions!).

White Bean & Vegetable Soup
enough for 8+ servings

32oz box low-sodium Chicken stock (or Vegetable)
3 cups of water
1 15oz can of diced tomatoes
1 15oz can of french cut green beans (rinsed)
1 15oz can of white beans (rinsed)
1 cup (about) of frozen corn
1 cup (about) of frozen peas
1/2 cup of diced carrots
1 strip of bacon (can be omitted to make Vegetarian)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2~3 cloves of garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons of dried thyme
1 teaspoon of pink salt
2 teaspoons of kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1/2 teaspoon of dried basil
1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

Open and rinse the beans. To keep the salt content down you’ve got to get rid of all that goop. Fresh beans would work great too. Small dice your carrots, crush and dice the garlic, and prepare any other vegetables. Once your mis en plas (Everything is in place) is done heat the olive oil in a large non-reactive (Stainless Steel, Glass, or Ceramic) pot.

Saute the garlic and bacon in the oil until soft. Drop in carrots and other fresh veggies. Cook until they begin to soften. Add tomatoes, beans, and spices (retain about half the salt to add as needed later in cooking). Marry for 5 minutes. Stir frequently. Add stock and water, bring to boil. Reduce heat to a slow simmer and cook for 45minutes to an hour. Check on it ever 15 minutes or so, giving it a stir.

After about 30 minutes taste. Add salt as needed.

It would have been great to serve it with a little Parmesan cheese, or thick crusty bread. We did without tonight. Take a look in your pantry - I’m sure you’ve got some stuff that would go great in a soup. I’m trying to get off my bum and make something. Mission Accomplished today!

~ Mike